Emma Raducanu: British No 1 in defeat to explain horror start as Solana Sierra exits French Open early | tennis news

An emotional Emma Radukanu was at a loss to explain her dreadful start to the French Open as she lost in the first opening round in Paris.

The British No. 1 failed to win a game in a one-sided opening set against Argentina’s Solana Sierra, hitting zero winners and committing 15 unforced errors.

Radukanu looked like he might be headed for the worst defeat of his career when he trailed 4-1 in the second set but he made a late comeback, Fighting back to force a tie-break before losing 6-0 7-6 (4)..

“It was tough,” said the 23-year-old, who committed 42 unforced errors. “I don’t think I’ve fully processed it yet, so it’s hard to talk about the match right now.

“But I have to at least take the fact that, from a set down and 4-1 down, I came back and made it competitive in the second set. I’m pretty disappointed. Of course I wanted to do better.

“I went on the court, I felt like the conditions were very lively and I felt like I couldn’t trust my shots and I didn’t feel like I had control over the ball.

“Maybe a little bit lighter on the matches, a little bit lighter on the confidence coming into the tournament.

“The first set happened very quickly, and it’s not a good feeling when points and games are going very quickly. I’m glad I was able to get a few games on the board in the second set.”

Raduchanu began to pick himself up

Radukanu looked upbeat and confident in training to be reunited with US Open-winning coach Andrew Richardson earlier this week but arrived in Paris having played just one match in two-and-a-half months after battling a post-viral illness.

He was still bothered by a lingering cough that was aggravated by the clay that was blown off the court and it will clearly take time for Radukanu to find a groove again after this latest break from the tour.

Everything he’s been through since his life-changing win in New York in 2021 has weighed on him, and he teared up when asked how he picked himself up.

“It’s very difficult,” he said. “You need a lot of resilience. I’m trying my best every day, and that’s all I ask of myself.”

No regrets coming to Paris

Radukanu will turn his attention to the grass-court season, where he has traditionally performed strongly, and the HSBC Championships starting June 8 at Queen’s Club.

But he insisted he didn’t regret returning for the end of the clay season, saying: “At least, the two matches I’ve played, it would have been nice to save myself a match like today.

“It’s going to help me. I haven’t played a match and it’s tough to not have a match at the end of the clay season and these girls have confidence tournament after tournament. It’s been pretty tough for me.

“I didn’t necessarily do as well as I wanted to this year but the only way to face the way I feel and improve is to get through the hard parts, go through the pain and hopefully come out better and stronger on the other side.”

Wilander: Big time coming for Radukanu

Seven-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 Mats Wilander, speaking about Radukanu TNT Sports:

“Tennis has progressed so much for women that today you have to have a big weapon and with Radukanu, it’s not necessarily a big weapon on her forehand or backhand but for me the weapon is her movement and trying to get the ball early.

“Will it be enough? Maybe not on clay-courts but we know she’s got the heart for it because you can’t win a Grand Slam tournament unless you have a really strong mind. So she’s not back physically. Of course she has to stay injury free but I still think big time is coming for Emma Radukanu.”

Discussing his coaching change, the Swede said: “There are too many coaches and we want quick success as young players. As a generation they want answers very quickly so they go and change coaches.

“I believe you have to stick with the same coach. At least you have to give the coach a few years and one year is not enough but I think it’s a good relationship again.”

Former British No. 1 Johanna Konta said: “Do I think the expectations are as high for her? Yes and no! People have been waiting for it for a long time but now it’s less but it wouldn’t be a surprise if it happens again. So there’s a certain amount of expectation that will always be there. There’s no going back. There’s no version where you can go back to the basics. You can go forward.

“Tennis is constantly moving and you have to adapt to it. I don’t think you have to revolutionize who you are because who you are is what got you there but you have to add yourself. You have to be unpredictable enough that the players don’t understand you.”

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